Swing diffuser



Aug. 22, 1961 M. NECHINE 2,997,284

SWING DIFFUSER Filed July 16, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Aug. 22, 1961 L. M. NECHINE 2,997,284

swmc DIFFUSER Filed July 16, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 [7w Liar {ma/w 7m 7 127 @yi i United States Tatenr 2,997,284 SWING DIFFUSER Leonard M. Nechine, Highland Park, 111., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Food Machinery and Chemical Corporation, San Jose, Calif., a corporation of Delaware filed July 16,1957, Ser. No. 672,183 2Claims. (Cl. 261122) This invention relates to a swing diffuser comprising an upper and lower hanger pipe having a plurality of difiuser tubes attached to the lower hanger pipe and so arranged that the lower hanger pipe is driven downwardly into a sewage tank by a hoist secured to the upper hanger pipe, and is held against the lifting force caused by the buoyancy of the liquid in which it is immersed by a link secured at one end to a stationary header and at the other end to the lower hanger pipe.

The present invention is an improvement over the Lannert Patent No. 2,328,655, in which the lower hanger pipe is lowered by gravity. The buoyancy of the sewage in which the difluser is immersed has a tendency to lift the diffuser from the bottom of the sewage tank. It is sometimes necessary to provide positive anchoring means to counteract the buoyant forces tending to lift the diffuser from the sewage. Such anchoring means may comprise weights added to the diffuser, or means on the difluser assembly to engage hooks or rings projecting upwardly from the bottom of the sewage tank.

The swing assembly of the present invention comprises a stationary header suitably connected to an air main, an upper hanger pipe pivotally secured to the stationary header, a lower hanger pipe pivotally secured to the upper hanger pipe by a knee joint, and a link secured at one end to a lug or bracket extending from the stationary header and at its other end to a bracket secured to the lower knee of the knee joint below the joint.- Lines extending between the pivoted joints of the link, the joint between the upper hanger pipe and the stationary header, and the knee joint between upper and lower hanger pipes form a parallelogram having a pivoted joint at each corner. The location of the pivoted joints at opposite ends of the link is important in that the lines mentioned must form a true parallelogram to attain the results attained with applicants structure.

The link secured to the stationary header and the lower knee prevents the rotation of any one joint without rot-ation of the other three joints of the parallelogram. Accordingl-y, when the swing diffuser is in operating position and is pinned at the stationary header, buoyancy cannot raise any part of the assembly up through the liquid. The point of attachment of the link to the lower knee is below the knee joint to prevent independent rotation of the lower hanger pipe.

The swing assembly is raised and lowered by means of a hoist arranged to act at some point on the upper hanger pipe. The link controls the motion and positioning of the lower hanger pipe, and when the swing assembly is lowered the lower "hanger pipe is actually driven down into the sewage. Any suitable stop means may be provided to prevent the knee joints from moving in the wrong direction at the start of the raising or lowering operation.

The structure by means of which the above and other advantages are attained will be described in detail in the following specification, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, showing a preferred illustrative embodiment of the invention, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary sectional view of a sewage tank with a swing difr'user embodying the invention shown in elevation in its operative position within the tank;

FIG. 2 is a view, similar to FIG. 1, with the swing diffuser in its uppermost position;

wall 3 is connected to main 4 by means of a conduit- 7 and an L joint 8. A suitable valve (not shown) positioned in the stationary header to control the flow of air from the main 4. The upper portion 9 of thestationary header has an apertured flange 10 extending therefrom. A screw 11 extending through the aperture of flange 10 regulates the operation of the valve. Nuts 12 are threaded on the screw 11 on opposite sides of the flange 10 to limit the movement of the screw or to lock it against movement in either valve open or valve closed position. A pin 13 is inserted through an eper-- ture 13 in the stationary header 5 and a corresponding aperture (not shown), in an elbow 14 which is aligned with. aperture 13 when. the swing assembly is in operating position.

Ihe upper portion 9' of the stationary header has a circular opening on one vertical side. The elbow 14 is pivotally secured to the stationary header by means of a stud 16 disposed centrally of said circular opening. The apertures through which the pin 13 extendsv are offset from stud 16 so that when the pin 13 is inserted in the apertures it will prevent pivotal movement of the elbow 14 relative to the stationary header 5. The elbow 14 has an upper and a lower open end disposed in perpendicular planes. It will be understood that the designations upper and lower are used throughout the specification and claims to indicate the relative p'osi-. tions of the parts when the swing assembly is in operating position as shown in FIG. 1. The upper open end of elbow 14 is the same size as the circular opening of the stationary header 5 with which it is in registration. A seal 17 is interposed between the upper open end of elbow 14 and the circular opening of the header. seal permits pivotal movement of the elbow relative to the stationary header and prevents leakage of air at the joint between the elbow and the stationary header.

An upper hanger pipe- 18 has its upper end rigidly secured to the lower open end of elbow 14 which is disposed in a horizontal plane when the swing assembly is in the position shown in FIG. 1.

of an upper knee 19. The upper open end" of knee 19- is disposed in a: plane parallel to the plane in which thelower open end of elbow 14 is disposed. The knee/19 has alower open end in the same vertical plane-as the upper open end of elbow 14. The lower open end of.

knee 19 is in registration with a vertical opening of the same size at'the upper end of a lower knee 20. The up-- lower knee 2.0 and extending parallel to the stud" 16.

A seal 22, similar to seal 17, is interposed between the lower open end of upper knee 19' and the upper open end of lower knee 20. a I

The lower knee 20*has a lower open end" which is disposed horizontally at all times and has the upper,

end of a lower hanger pipe 23 rigidly secured thereto. The lower end of pipe" 23 is rigidly secured to a joint 24 extending upwardly from a header 25. The upper end of joint 24 is parallel to the lower open end of'thef lower knee 20*. A plurality of diffuser tubes 26 is so Patented Aug. 22, 1961 The The lower end of hanger pipe 18 is rigidly secured to the upper open end cured to the header 25. The difiuser tubes extend outwardly from the header 25 in parallel spaced relationship. The ends of the diffuser tubes close to the wall 3 of'the sewage tank are prevented from contacting the wall by a bumper rod 27 secured to the underside of the header 25.

When the swing assembly is to be raised, the knee joint is adapted to be swung to the left, as seen in dotted lines in Fig. 4. The joints are provided with lugs 28 and 29 which act as stop members to limit the movement of the knee joints.

- A rigid link 31 is pivotally secured at one end, by means of a bolt or screw 33, to a supporting member such as a lug or bracket 32 extending laterally from the stationary header in a plane below the stud 16. The other end of link 31 is pivotally connected, by means of a bolt or screw 34, to a supporting member such as a bracket 35 extending laterally from lower knee 20 below stud 21. The link 31 extends angularly between the 'pivot points 33 and 34 at its opposite ends to provide clearance for the header 25 when the assembly is raised from the tank 2, as indicated in FIG. 2. The rigidity of link 31 causes it to act mechanically inlthe same manner as ifit were a straight link connecting the pivot points 33 and 34. The straight line connecting the pivot points 33 and 34 forms one longitudinal side of a parallelogram of which a line drawn between studs 16 and 21 forms the other longitudinal side. The ends of the parallelogram are formed by lines between stud 16 and screw 33, and between stud 21 and screw 34, respectively. The four corners of the parallelogram are the pivoted joints indicated by the studs 16, 21 and the screws 33, 34.

The accurate location of the screws 33 and 34, by means of which the link is pivotally secured to the stationary header and the lower knee, is critical in that the figure represented by the lines between the studs 16, 21 and screws 33, 34 must be a true parallelogram in order to attain the desired results. If the joints of the link are not accurately aligned with the other joints of the parallelogram, the link or the upper pipe hanger would come under tension or compression when the swing assembly is being raised or lowered through 180 and might stall or fracture during such movement.

The link 31 causes the structure of the swing assembly to act like a pantograph, and prevents rotation of any joint without the rotation of the other three joints of the parallelogram. The location of screw 34 below the plane of stud 21 prevents independent rotation of the lower hanger pipe 23. The swing assembly is raised and lowered by means of a hoist (not shown) which is arranged to engage the upper hanger pipe 18 and to move the rest of the swing difiuser by the movement of the upper hanger pipe. The pin 13 is removed whenever the swing difiuser is to be raised or lowered. The link 31 controls the motion and positioning of the lower hanger pipe and actually drives it down into the sewage when the swing assembly is being lowered. When the swing assembly is in its Operating position and is pinned at the stationary header, no part of the assembly can be raised by the buoyancy of the liquid in which it is immersed because the pin prevents rotation of the elbow 14 about the stud 16.

While I have described a preferred embodiment of my invention in detail, it will be understood that the description thereof is illustrative, rather than restrictive, as many details may be modified or changed without departing from the spirit or scope of my invention. Accordingly, I do not desire to be restricted to the exact construction described.

I claim:

1. A swing assembly for raising and lowering difiusers in sewage, said assembly comprising a stationary header, an upper hanger pipe, a lower hanger pipe and a plurality of diffusers, said upper hanger pipe being pivotally connected at one end to said header and pivotally connected at the opposite end to the upper end of said lower hanger pipe, said ditfusers being secured to said lower hanger pipe and being normally subjected by said sewage to a buoyant force resisting downward movement of diffusers in said sewage, said dilfusers being movable from a lower position approximately directly beneath the pivotal connection between said upper hanger pipe and said header through an arc of about to an upper position approximately directly above the pivotal connection between said upper hanger pipe and said header, a first pivot fixed with respect to said lower hanger pipe and positioned a predetermined distance from the pivotal connection between the upper and lower hanger pipes, a second pivot fixed with respect tosaid stationary header and positioned a like predetermined distance from the pivotal connection between the upper hanger pipe and the stationary header, and a rigid link pivotally connected at opposite ends thereof to said first and second pivots, said first and second pivots and the pivotal connections at the opposite ends of said upper hanger pipe being so spaced and positioned that straight lines connecting said four pivot points form a parallelogram when said diffusers are in both their upper and lower positions, whereby said rigid link acts against said buoyant 'force to pro vide a counter force efiective to urge said diffusers and said lower hanger pipe into said lower position when said upper hanger pipe is pivoted downwardly into its lower position.

2. A swing assembly for raising and lowering diffusers in sewage, said assembly comprising a stationary header, an upper hanger pipe, a lower hanger pipe and a plurality of diiiusers, said upper hanger pipe being pivotally connected at one end to said header and pivotally con nected at the opposite end to the upper end of said lower hanger pipe, said diffusers being mounted on a header pipe secured to the lower end of said lower hanger pipe in line therewith and extending in a direction parallel to the axis of said pivotal connection between said upper hanger pipe and said header and said diffusers being normally subjected by said sewage to a buoyant force resisting downward movement of diffusers in said sewage, said diffusers being movable from a lower position approximately directly beneath the pivotal connection between said upper hanger pipe and said header through an arc of about 180 to an upper position approximately directly above the pivotal connection between said upper hanger pipe and said header, a first pivot fixed with respect to said lower hanger pipe and positioned a predetermined distance from the pivotal connection between the upper and lower hanger pipes, a second pivot fixed with respect to said stationary header and positioned a like predetermined distance irom the pivotal connection between the upper hanger pipe and the stationary header, and a rigid link pivotally connected at opposite ends thereof to said first and second pivots, said first and second pivots and the pivotal connections at the opposite ends of said upper hanger pipe being so spaced and positioned that straight lines connecting said four pivot points form a parallelogram when said difiusers are in both their upper and lower positions, whereby said rigid link acts against said buoyant force to provide a counter force efifective to urge said difiiusers and said lower hanger pipe into said lower position when said upper hanger pipe is pivoted downwardly into its lower position, and said rigidlink being bent to receive said header pipe within the bend of said link when said lower hanger pipe is pivoted upwardly into its upper position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,454,390 Loranger May 8, 1923 2,301,661 Wiedenhoeft Nov. 10, 1942 2,328,655 Lannert Sept. 7, 1943 

